Revenge of the Nerd

A legendary comedic second banana to a litany of major stars, Curtis is forever cemented in the public imagination as Booger from Revenge of the Nerds. A classically trained actor, Curtis began his incredible 40-year career onstage but progressed rapidly to film and television. He was typecast early, and it proved to be the best thing that could have happened. But there's more to Curtis' story than that.

Scores: How I Opened the Hottest Strip Club in New York City, Was Extorted out of Millions by the Gambino Family, and Became One of the Most Successful Mafia Informants in FBI History

Meet Michael Blutrich, mild-mannered New York lawyer and founder of Scores, the hottest strip club in New York City history, funded by the proceeds of an insurance embezzlement scheme. All Blutrich wanted was to lay low, make the club a success, and put his criminal acts behind him. But the Mafia got involved, and soon the FBI came knocking. Scores became wildly popular, in part thanks to Blutrich's ability to successfully bend the rules of adult entertainment. Unfortunately for Blutrich, it would all soon implode.

Cheech Is Not My Real Name: ...But Don't Call Me Chong

Cheech Marin came of age at an interesting time in America and became a self-made counterculture legend with his other half, Tommy Chong. This insightful memoir delves into how Cheech dodged the draft, formed one of the most successful comedy duos of all time, became the face of the recreational drug movement with the film Up in Smoke, forged a successful solo career, and became the owner of the most renowned collection of Chicano art in the world.

Devil's Bargain: Steve Bannon, Donald Trump, and the Storming of the Presidency

From the reporter who was there at the very beginning comes the revealing inside story of the partnership between Steve Bannon and Donald Trump - the key to understanding the rise of the alt-right, the fall of Hillary Clinton, and the hidden forces that drove the greatest upset in American political history.

Letterman: The Last Giant of Late Night

In a career spanning more than 30 years, David Letterman redefined the modern talk show with an ironic comic style that transcended traditional television. While he remains one of the most famous stars in America, he is a remote, even reclusive figure whose career is widely misunderstood. In Letterman, Jason Zinoman, the first comedy critic in the history of the New York Times, mixes groundbreaking reporting with unprecedented access and probing critical analysis to explain the unique entertainer's titanic legacy.

Lies and the Lying Liars Who Tell Them: A Fair and Balanced Look at the Right

Finding logical inconsistencies, factual errors, and doublespeak wherever he looks, Al Franken takes on and destroys the myth of liberal bias in the media, hoists the Bush White House on its own rhetorical petard, and punctures the mean-spirited sanctimony of such media darlings as Ann Coulter and Bill O'Reilly. Timely, provocative, unfailingly honest, and always uproarious, Lies is sure to raise hackles and spark hilarity inside the Beltway and from sea to shining sea.

The Chris Farley Show: A Biography in Three Acts

The New York Times best-selling biography of an American comedy legend. After three years of sobriety, Chris Farley's life was at its creative peak until a string of professional disappointments chased him back to drugs and alcohol. He fought hard against them, but it was a fight he would lose in December 1997. Farley's fans immediately drew parallels between his death and that of his idol, John Belushi. Without looking deeper, however, many failed to see that Farley was much more than just another Hollywood drug overdose. In this officially authorized oral history, Farley's friends and family remember his work and life.

We Don't Need Roads: The Making of the Back to the Future Trilogy

Long before Marty McFly and Doc Brown traveled through time in a flying DeLorean, director Robert Zemeckis and his friend and writing partner Bob Gale worked tirelessly to break into the industry with a hit. For the first time ever, the story of how these two young filmmakers struck lightning is being told by those who witnessed it. We Don't Need Roads includes original interviews with Zemeckis, Gale, Christopher Lloyd, Lea Thompson, Huey Lewis, and over 50 others who contributed to one of the most popular and profitable film trilogies of all time.

Deal: My Three Decades of Drumming, Dreams, and Drugs with the Grateful Dead

On their 50th anniversary comes a groundbreaking rock-and-roll memoir by one of the founding members of the Grateful Dead. The Grateful Dead are perhaps the most legendary American rock band of all time. For 30 years, beginning in the hippie scene of San Francisco in 1965, they were a musical institution, the original jam band that broke new ground in so many ways.

catsunflower says:"Awesome 1st hand account of the long strange trip!"

My Mother Was Nuts: A Memoir

her life story going her humble roots in the Bronx to one of the most liked and respected figures in the entertainment business, also covering her marriage to Rob Reiner and relationships with Art Garfunkel, Carrie Fisher, and John Belushi, and her bout with lung and brain cancer in 2009, to Julia Cheiffetz

I Am Brian Wilson

As a cofounding member of the Beach Boys in the 1960s, Wilson created some of the most groundbreaking and timeless popular music ever recorded. With intricate harmonies, symphonic structures, and wide-eyed lyrics that explored life's most transcendent joys and deepest sorrows, songs like "In My Room", "God Only Knows", and "Good Vibrations" forever expanded the possibilities of pop songwriting.

18 and Life on Skid Row

18 and Life on Skid Row tells the story of a boy who spent his childhood moving from Freeport, Bahamas, to California and finally to Canada and who, at the age of eight, discovered the gift that would change his life. Throughout his career, Sebastian Bach has sold over 20 million records both as the lead singer of Skid Row and as a solo artist.

Live from New York: The Complete, Uncensored History of Saturday Night Live as Told by Its Stars, Writers, and Guests

When first published to celebrate the 30th anniversary of Saturday Night Live, Live from New York was immediately proclaimed the best book ever produced on the landmark and legendary late-night show. In their own words, unfiltered and uncensored, a dazzling galaxy of trail-blazing talents recalled three turbulent decades of on-camera antics and off-camera escapades.

The Run of His Life: The People v. O.J. Simpson

The definitive account of the O. J. Simpson trial, The Run of His Life is a prodigious feat of reporting that could have been written only by the foremost legal journalist of our time. First published less than a year after the infamous verdict, Jeffrey Toobin's nonfiction masterpiece tells the whole story, from the murders of Nicole Brown Simpson and Ronald Goldman to the ruthless gamesmanship behind the scenes of "the trial of the century".

The Comedians: Drunks, Thieves, Scoundrels and the History of American Comedy

In The Comedians, comedy historian Kliph Nesteroff brings to life a century of American comedy with real-life characters, forgotten stars, mainstream heroes and counterculture iconoclasts. Based on over 200 original interviews and extensive archival research, Nesteroff's groundbreaking work is a narrative exploration of the way comedians have reflected, shaped, and changed American culture over the past 100 years.

I Must Say: My Life as a Humble Comedy Legend

Martin Short takes you on a rich, hilarious, and occasionally heartbreaking ride through his life and times, from his early years in Toronto as a member of the fabled improvisational troupe Second City to the all-American comic big time of Saturday Night Live and memorable roles in movies such as ¡Three Amigos! and Father of the Bride.

In Such Good Company: Eleven Years of Laughter, Mayhem, and Fun in the Sandbox

Who but Carol Burnett herself has the timing, talent, and wit to pull back the curtain on the Emmy Award-winning show that made television history for 11 glorious seasons? In Such Good Company delves into little-known stories of the guests, sketches, and antics that made the show legendary as well as some favorite tales too good not to relive again. Carol lays it all out for us, from the show's original conception to its evolution into one of the most beloved primetime programs of its generation.

You Might Remember Me: The Life and Times of Phil Hartman

Both joyous tribute and serious biography, Mike Thomas' You Might Remember Me is a celebration of Phil Hartman's multi-faceted career and an exhaustively reported, warts-and-all examination of his often intriguing and sometimes complicated life - a powerful, humor-filled and disquieting portrait of a man who was loved by many, admired by millions and taken from them far too early.

MASH: A Novel About Three Army Doctors

Before the movie, this is the novel that gave life to Hawkeye Pierce, Trapper John, Hot Lips Houlihan, Frank Burns, Radar O'Reilly, and the rest of the gang that made the 4077th MASH like no other place in Korea or on earth. The doctors who worked in the Mobile Army Surgical Hospitals (MASH) during the Korean War were well trained but, like most soldiers sent to fight a war, too young for the job. In the words of the author, "a few flipped their lids, but most of them just raised hell, in a variety of ways and degrees."

Chaos Monkeys: Obscene Fortune and Random Failure in Silicon Valley

Imagine a chimpanzee rampaging through a data center powering everything from Google to Facebook. Infrastructure engineers use a software version of this "chaos monkey" to test online services' robustness - their ability to survive random failure and correct mistakes before they actually occur. Tech entrepreneurs are society's chaos monkeys, disruptors testing and transforming every aspect of our lives from transportation (Uber) and lodging (AirBnB) to television (Netflix) and dating (Tinder).

Face-to-face with some of America's most terrifying killers, FBI veteran and ex-Army CID colonel Robert Ressler learned from them how to identify the unknown monsters who walk among us - and put them behind bars. Now the man who coined the phrase "serial killer" and advised Thomas Harris on The Silence of the Lambs shows how he has tracked down some of the nation's most brutal murderers. Join Ressler as he takes you on the hunt for America's most dangerous psychopaths. It is a terrifying journey you will not forget.

But Enough About Me: A Memoir

Burt Reynolds has been a Hollywood leading man for six decades, known for his legendary performances, sex-symbol status, and storied Hollywood romances. In his long career of stardom, during which he was number one at the box office for five years in a row, Reynolds has seen it all. But Enough About Me will tell his story through the people he's encountered on his amazing journey.

Publisher's Summary

The creator of Animal House at last tells the real story of the fraternity that inspired the iconic film: a story far more outrageous (and funny!) than any movie could capture.

Animal House, the film adaptation of stories Chris Miller published in National Lampoon about his experiences at a Dartmouth fraternity, is among the most beloved and successful comedies of all time. In fact, its portrayal of college party life is still imitated on campuses across the country: toga party, anyone? Now, nearly 30 years after the movie hit theaters, there are no taboos left, and Chris Miller can finally answer the fans who all want to know one thing: was it really like that? The answer: yes, but much, much more out of control!

Here, for the first time, are the real stories of Alpha Delta Phi, like the one about the frat brother who entertained the house by lighting his hair on fire (not the hair on his head, however). Or about the pledge who trick-or-treated around campus in a very revealing jack-o-lantern costume. Or about initiation night, when a frozen hot dog became very painful for two rushes. Wild and hilarious, The Real Animal House is a must-listen for any fan of the film and anyone who remembers their college days as a blur of great parties and solid friendship.

What the Critics Say

"Billed as a 'wildly exaggerated memoir', this book by the writer whose autobiographical stories for National Lampoon were the basis of the movie Animal House is exactly what you would expect it to be: loud, raucous, infantile, racy, and very funny." (Booklist)

I always liked reading Chris Miller's short stories in National Lampoon during the 1970's and was glad to find this on audible. I found myself laughing out loud a number of times while listening.This is in no way highbrow stuff; not porn as another reviewer said, just stories about a bunch of guys who were completely out of control (some lucky to be alive) in college. And yes Lampoon fans, the Night of the Seven Fires is in here.So wait until the family is out of town, grab a six pack and some camels, put on some James Brown (I know you still have that record), and enjoy.

The book reads like a bad text book; the equivalent of a marine biology text book being the back story of "Jaws". Yes, you can see some glimmers of the characters you know, but those few glimmers are buried in hours of dry redundancy.

What was most disappointing about Chris Miller’s story?

The ability at narrative, or lack thereof. I wasn't looking for this to be the script of a funny movie, but once the beginning of the book leaves the discussion of Harold Ramis being offered the writing job, the next ninety minutes is an extremely detailed and painful overview of the college campus. There are trees, and seasons, and snow, and believe me, if you listen to those ninety minutes, you will know that these things exist at this college, in detail, with your senses educated to the nth degree. Should I go on? Believe me, the book does.

Would you be willing to try another one of Todd McLaren’s performances?

McLaren did ok but not one of the best performances.

What character would you cut from The Real Animal House?

The one that feels that we need hours of repeated descriptions of the same things over, and over. The attention to detail is extraordinary, but sadly, the topics that are in great detail are not topics that needed covered in-depth. <br/><br/>We know what Spring breaking loose Winter's cold grasp looks like, and feels like, and smells like, and feels like under our shoes, and feels like in wet hair, and sounds like, and...., no, please take that gun out of your mouth!! Unlike the book, I will stop and simply say listen to the last 45 minutes and you have the whole book, and a lot of your life left.

I really wanted to like this book. I recently reconnected with a bunch of my old frat brothers from 30 yrs ago and hoped this book would reconnect me with good, old memories. Unfortunately, it totally strains the bounds of credulity. I'm a physician who has worked in more ERs than I care to remember, and it is very difficult for the human body to function after consuming as much alcohol as the author claims he and his brothers did in single evenings of partying. At least one of them would have wound up in a hospital with acute alcohol poisoning. No beer goes undrunk, no woman goes unscrewed in this book. A waste of a credit.